PHILADELPHIA – A team of official observers watched Eagles running back LeSean McCoy lift weights Thursday along with quarterback Michael Vick.

It wasn’t a normal weight-lifting session. Three weeks removed from a concussion, McCoy was working extremely hard. He also was alert when the public portion of his audience was brought to his attention.

Vick, four weeks from his concussion, was in particularly good spirits as he nodded toward passersby with a grin on his face.

Where this session takes the duo, nobody knows expect that Vick has played his last game for the Eagles – at least this season.

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Eagles head coach Andy Reid committed to rookie quarterback Nick Foles. Even if Vick is medically cleared – and his face sure seemed to have the look of someone who beat the dreaded impact test – the Eagles don’t think it’s a good idea to put him back on the field.

Reid has left the door open for a return by McCoy.

Offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg said Thursday, “Absolutely, yeah,” he can visualize a backfield with both McCoy and standout rookie running back Bryce Brown, who’s scored two touchdowns in each of the past two games.

Right now the good news is the Eagles have a shot of landing the first overall pick in the draft.

Noting the schedules, Foxsports.com feels the Eagles have their best chance to secure the first overall pick since they used it to draft Chuck Bednarik in 1949.

According to Playoffstatus.com and its probability formula, the Eagles are likely to wind up choosing third in the draft.

In PlayoffStatus scenarios the first five picks, in order, would go to the Chiefs (2-10), Jaguars (2-10), Eagles (3-9), Panthers (3-9) and Raiders (3-9).

The Eagles would have just a 6 percent probability of picking first, followed by probabilities of 20 percent for choosing second, 22 percent for going third and 20 percent for fourth.

Don’t believe the smokescreens. The prize in the draft is West Virginia quarterback Geno Smith.

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Eagles defensive coordinator Todd Bowles, who took over when Juan Castillo was fired, was anything but shocked when defensive line coach Jim Washburn was canned Monday.

“When you take a coaching job in this league, you learn not to be surprised by anything,” Bowles said. “But things happen during the course of the year. Players get hurt. Coaches get let go. That’s called body blows that you have to take and adjust and move forward.

“Everybody’s responsible for the way we’ve been playing. Wash wasn’t let go to be made out to be a scapegoat or anything like that. But moving forward, we’re all responsible to do our jobs, coaches and players.”

Bowles said he had no input in Washburn’s firing, and that he got along with the veteran coach.

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NOTES: The Eagles’ last win was against the Giants. The referee was Ron Winter, who officiates Eagles-Buccaneers Sunday. The Eagles have won three straight games with Winter’s whistle … If Bowles is interested in the vacant Temple U. head coaching job, there’s no reason the Eagles wouldn’t give him permission to speak with the school. Bowles is a Temple alum who bleeds cherry and white … The Bucs game marks a two-games-in-five-days challenge for the Eagles. The Eagles entertain the Bengals next Thursday.